A new opera: new to the record catalogue, at any rate, and likely a discovery, and a welcome one, to any listener diverted by the rich musical world of the 18th century. London, capital of that derided ‘land without music’, was the creative crucible of the day, the destination and then home of many foreign luminaries including Handel, J.C. Bach and then Haydn. John Galliard's 'Pan and Syrinx' achieved a name for itself and its composer just as Handel was in the ascendant in the early decades of the century with masterpieces such as Rinaldo and Acis and Galatea.